Meanings
letterman1
plural lettermen
- USA student who has attained a specified level of participation in a sporting or other activity, and is awarded a cloth “letter” to be affixed to an item of clothing.
The children seem to catch their enthusiasm from the energetic instructors, ten of them former lettermen at Kansas universities.
1967, United States Office of Education, Stepping Up with PACE, page 121 more example
Cousins told the students of their responsibility emphasizing that the sweaters were given them in recognition by the school that they were the “best in the field.” Coach Smith distributed the dark blue slip over sweaters with a gold block T on the front to the lettermen.
2000, Cecilia Aros Hunter, Leslie Gene Hunter, Texas A&M University Kingsville, Arcadia Publishing, →ISBN, page 62
Letterman2
Synonyms & antonyms
Origin
letterman · noun
- Englishletter
- Proto-Indo-European*mon-
- Proto-Germanic*mann-
- Proto-West Germanic*mann
- Old Englishmann
- Middle Englishman
- Englishletterman
Letterman · proper noun
- GermanLettermann
- EnglishLetterman
Variant of German Lettermann.
More words from German
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
letterman. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/letterman
“letterman.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/letterman. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “letterman,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/letterman.
Source: letterman on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.